F.O.I. President Adrian Bajada was one of the speakers at a conference organised by the Union Haddiema Maghqudin (UHM) entitled "The Introduction of the euro in Malta" on March 22.

Mr Bajada spoke on the importance of a sound information strategy around the changeover process so that the whole community will not feel threatened by this important adjustment.

"In this regard, Malta is in an advantageous position and can learn from other countries' experiences and avoid their pitfalls when it comes to adopting the common currency," he said.

In adopting the euro, Malta would be further strengthening its European position, particularly as our manufacturing sector exports mainly to European countries like Germany, France and Italy which are already in the Eurozone, he said.

The FOI president said that while the Federation does not anticipate any particular disadvantages emanating from the adoption of the euro, this changeover would bring with it a number of challenges and burdens, particularly to the smaller operators, which need to be minimised through a smooth process of changeover.

Mr Bajada then added that it is crucial that an effective monitoring set-up is put in place as from the early days of this changeover to ensure that any abuse which may happen in the whole process, particularly in the pricing of products and services.